Many tire tread patterns include one or more longitudinal grooves—i.e. grooves that extend circumferentially around the tire. Such grooves can improve the traction performance of the tire when driving and turning in conditions such as snow and mud. Optimal performance of the longitudinal grooves generally requires that the grooves be clear of obstructions.
Unfortunately, during tire use, the grooves can become blocked or clogged. For example, mud can load the longitudinal grooves, rocks can become lodged in the grooves, and/or other foreign materials can enter and degrade traction performance. For example, hydroplaning resistance and mud or snow traction may decrease. These problems can occur irrespective of the depth or shape of the longitudinal groove.
Centrifugal forces created as the tire rotates may not be sufficient to dislodge all obstructions of the longitudinal grooves. For a stone or pebble, for example, such obstruction may be wedged into place. With mud or snow, these materials may become compacted and/or the tire rotation speed may not be high enough to provide ejection. Additionally, the presence of a stone in a longitudinal groove can lead to a tire puncture resulting in an air leak and/or the undesirable presence of moisture within the structure of the tire.
Challenges exist with designing and applying devices to remove the obstructions. For example, one proposed solution would utilize a bristle brush positioned into contact with the tread for the removal of material from the grooves. As the tire rotates, the brushes are intended to clean the grooves. However, constant contact between the brush and tire during rotation wears the brush necessitating its replacement and can cause premature wear on the tire. Also, a multi-component assembly is used to position the brush into contact with the tire.
Another challenge relates to the non-rotational movement of the tire during use. More specifically, many vehicles are equipped with suspension systems that e.g., allow the tire to move relative to the vehicle along the vertical direction as the tire rolls over an obstacle. This movement can increase the comfort of the vehicle operator during such an event by having the vehicle's suspension system absorb some of the vertical movement rather than translating such movement directly to the body of the vehicle. However, the changing position of the tire increases the difficulty of locating a device to remove material from the tread.
Accordingly, a device for removing obstructions from the longitudinal grooves of a tire tread would be useful. Such a device that can be equipped to remove a variety of different types of obstructions would be particularly beneficial. Such a device that can be equipped to operate with a tire mounted on a suspension system which allows movement of the tire relative to the vehicle would also be useful.